On Deciding What to Write First

[Pending]

I'm stuck on what I actually want to write. I have a few ideas, but I remain uncommitted to each. Does anyone have advice on deciding which project I should start first? Or if you have ever been in this situation, what was the deciding factor in your choice?

I've eliminated overly ambitious ideas that would require heavy world building or books that would be a part of a series until I've gotten more experience. So, the list is shorter now...

Thank you in advance.

 

[Homer Potvin]

Write an opening scene and see how it comes out. Don't worry too much about the down the road stuff, like research or worldbuilding or whatever if you can. It's just an opening scene with no pressure and nothing to lose. Then if that doesn't work--or maybe even if it does--write an opening scene for the next idea and see how that comes out.

My WIP now is one three opening chapters I wrote in the last year. Each was around 2-4K words. It took a minute, but after I looked them over and tossed them around my noodle, it became obvious that they should be written in X, Y, Z order. The deciding factor was one was probably... easier? It was a more straightforward plot that I thought would be the most fun to write, and because it had been years since I wrote anything seriously, I though I was more likely to get back into the swing of things writing a fun project. I also thought I could do it the fastest while I have some time in my life to focus on writing for a few months (hopefully).

So far so good.

Not sure what you experience level is, but if you're new or fairly new, I'd just start chugging away.

 

[Naomasa298]

I've written three openings lately. I'm just going to work on whichever one depending on what my mood is, and as I get further in, the urge to complete them will become stronger, and one of them will become my focus for a while. Mind you, I'm writing short stories, so I can switch with an end goal closer to me than a novel would be,

 

[Seven Crowns]

If I were just sketching a story, I would write an opening, middle, and end. Whichever order is easiest. I would write the middle so that it wasn't immediately apparent how the beginning got there. Same with the ending from the middle. That gives you a lot to think about for the final story. And it's that last step, the daydreaming and imagining the connecting pieces which connects it all. That's where the story is really written. You can even change the beginning and end once your imaginings find a better example of each.

And yeah, the center is the anchor. The moral crisis. It's the purpose of the story. The eye of the storm. You could shift it some, but it's that purpose at the center that wants to live on. It's hard to move without changing everything drastically.

 

[Fortunato]

You can write a story by taking a small excerpt or some lines from a story ( story or novel. I will call this the situation). Change the characters and what happens or even the genre and prose. Or even change the point of view character if the work could be an interesting retelling from a different perspective. Try this for any future project. When reading this is a good way to start a short story or even when you are writing a novel. So you would start the story differently. It would be your own unique version on the story. Be sure to make the characters different. The plot should be too. The rest will come from your imagination. It’s important to use your own wording too and ideas. Reading is important for this reason and for many others because it could inspire writers from poets to novelists. You can write what you feel most passionate about. Maybe the story is about something you love or hate. Maybe that subject is the most promising to write about. That gets rid of the blank page.

 

[Naomasa298]

You can write a story by taking a small excerpt or some lines from a story ( story or novel. I will call this the situation). Change the characters and what happens or even the genre and prose. Or even change the point of view character if the work could be an interesting retelling from a different perspective. Try this for any future project. When reading this is a good way to start a short story or even when you are writing a novel. So you would start the story differently. It would be your own unique version on the story. Be sure to make the characters different. The plot should be too. The rest will come from your imagination. It’s important to use your own wording too and ideas. Reading is important for this reason and for many others because it could inspire writers from poets to novelists. You can write what you feel most passionate about. Maybe the story is about something you love or hate. Maybe that subject is the most promising to write about. That gets rid of the blank page.

The OP is not asking how to start a story. He's asking which one to choose between all of his ideas.

 

[Fortunato]

Okay. Well the poster of the opening post could if they wanted of course write what makes them feel emotionally interested about writing these three stories in the first place ( he needs to provide a small summary of the ideas in my opinion). I usually agree that I would try something easier than something that is considered to be more difficult because of being ambitious with the world building. What usually motivates me is what the characters are feeling though for me it is a strong emotion felt by the writer. How does the work make me feel?

The op can post a synopsis or a general idea of what each of these three are about, and we can vote which one is more interesting of the these if he decides to provide more details. Writing after all is an art because the reader is the audience.

I typed out the extraneous information that wasn’t asked because writer’s block is something that is a common writing issue. I assumed this because a lot of writers experience writer’s block in the community I will assume.

So the reader’s input is sorely needed here concerning the three ideas if the writer decides to share more details. How does it make them feel?

We probably need more information to make a better pick for the better choice.

If the difficulty of writing it is the criteria for picking it I would go for what has been chosen so far if that is a good choice.

I would go for the one that helps me write it because of the emotion it creates. This is from a writer’s point of view.

 

[Banespawn]

Can you combine 2 or more of your ideas into one story?

 

[Pending]

Can you combine 2 or more of your ideas into one story?

No, the settings and storylines are drastically different. Good idea though.

 

[Stuart Dren]

It's great that you're starting with what is supposed to be a simple scope project. It will be harder, and even more rewarding, than you think.

I agree with the others that what you're currently most passionate about will come through if you try a few openings. Heh, you could also random-pick (dice, coin) and see if you're happy or unhappy with the outcome. I find that's a neat way to force your brain to consider what it really wants when the options seem even enough.

That said, there needs to be a point where you commit and refuse to be tempted by the other fruits, like when you're 15k words in and just realised you have severe structural or otherwise issues leading to you staring at a blank page and your wordcount tanking. Suddenly the others will seem like a better idea, but they're not. It's a lie. Most times, the obstacle you'll run into is your own longform capability no matter what story you've chosen. If you can't surmount it, work around it by writing whatever other scenes are possible, but stay on that project.

 

[JT Woody]

Write on all of them.

My old progress journal has a list of various projects and ideas. and then the wordcount for each of them. The way I determine what is worth writing/sticking to first is to write the ideas I have for all of them. The one with the most words to it (or, the one I just cant seem to put down), is the one that I continue, pushing the others to the back of the list.

 

[Rzero]

Passion is key. This is absolutely true. So let me ask you a question. Are you having trouble choosing because you're equally enthusiastic about all of them, or because none of them thrill you to your core? Because those are two very different issues with different solutions. If they're all blowing your hair back, try them out, like everyone said. If they're not, that's okay. It probably means they need some developing is all.

We haven't gotten into plotting vs. pantsing in this thread yet, but I think it's relevant. If this is your first major project, you won't know whether you work better with an outline or flying by the seat of your pants. You basically have to try one and see if it works. Either way, plenty of pantsers still plan ahead a bit. Even if you want to discover your story as you write, it couldn't hurt to do some background work, for instance, with your characters. You don't have to do character sheets and full backstories, but populating the beginning of your story and figuring out things like relationships, motivations and personalities can help you either become extremely attached to them or decide that they aren't the characters you want to spend months or years of your time with. A litle world building might go a long way in that same direction.

I'm a plotter. I work out a detailed outline and usually make some character notes before I start a book. When I wrote my first, I, like you, had too many ideas. I narrowed them down a bit and made five outlines. They were all interesting to me in different ways, but I kept coming back to one over and over, filling in more details and fleshing out the story. I cared more about the characters; I was more excited about the plot; it just stood out as the right project. Two books later, I now have over twenty outlines to choose from. (I'm not suggesting that you write dozens of outlines, by the way. It's something I do when I'm blocked or just procrastinating.) Some are far closer to ready than others, but there are two I keep coming back to. By the time I finish revisions on book 2, hopefully one will stand out more than the other.

Good luck with your decision. Remember, if you get a few chapters in and realize you're writing the wrong book, it's not too late to try another, just avoid the trap of constantly jumping ship for "better" ideas. @Stuart Dren spoke to this. The Grass Is Greener Syndrom prevents a lot of writers from ever actually finishing stories. I know from experience. I started and failed to finish so many projects before I came up with the five outline plan. There are some writers out there who can pull off working on several large projects at once. Most of us cannot.

 

[Pending]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. All of my book ideas were missing something. I nearly went with a more ambitious (but very fun) project, but thankfully another one of my ideas finally clicked. I shall try not to cheat on it with another novel because that is a very bad habit. I did try to write out starters but for a lot of them it's difficult to decide where to begin.

Although if the children's book idea keeps yammering, I may have to attend to it.

While I did consider spitting out my ideas and asking y'all to pick, it would not resolve my internal indecisiveness, nor would it benefit me on future projects.

Have a good day!